Failure to Prove No “Feasible and Prudent” Alternative

Texas law (Chapter 26 of the Texas Parks & Wildlife Code) requires Harris Health to prove that it had no “feasible and prudent” alternative to taking this parkland.

The law required Harris County Commissioners to hold a public hearing on this issue.

At the March 19th hearing, Harris Health was required to produce studies and other evidence about the alternatives it had rejected: adding floors to existing buildings (which a 2020 study had apparently proposed), discontinuing its practice of housing discharged patients in scarce on-campus beds, constructing new buildings on sites identified by planner Keiji Asakura, constructing its addition on the unoccupied City site that could have been connected by a walkway, renovating outpatient spaces to house patient beds, analyzing administrative/outpatient functions that could have been moved off-site, and more. It also failed to report on the impact of the new LBJ Hospital on Ben Taub’s future patient volume.

Harris Health has never provided architectural, planning, or engineering studies to support its claims that it has no space on its 11+ acres for more beds.

It has consistently said only that it had studied alternatives and had rejected them.

Despite many requests from constituents to delay the decision about this significant and irreversible action, the Commissioners Court immediately voted to allow Harris Health to take the parkland. s://agenda.harriscountytx.gov/

Tell your representatives that we need better information about this project.

Precinct 1 (Rodney Ellis)
Comm_Ellis@cp1.hctx.net
(713) 274-1000

Precinct 2 (Adrian Garcia)
commissioner@pct2.hctx.net
(713) 274-2222

Precinct 3 (Tom Ramsey)
pct3@pct3.com
(713) 274-3000

Precinct 4 (Lesley Briones)
service@hcp4.net
(832) 927-4444

County Judge (Lina Hidalgo)
judge.hidalgo@cjo.hctx.net 
(713) 274-7000

Entire Commissioners Court
CommissionersCourt@hctx.net
(713) 274-1300

Mayor John Whitmire
mayor@houstontx.gov
(713) 837-0311

Which County Commissioner represents you?
Just visit
https://www.harriscountytx.gov/Harris-County-Service-Request and type in your address.